All about electric water heaters

Believe it or not – the second largest expense in your average American home is heating your water. That’s straight from the US Department of Energy. As such, determining what kind of water heater to install is one of the most important decisions you can make as a home owner.

While there are several different kinds of heaters on the market – standard heaters are the most popular and usually come in one of two variations – gas or electric. While natural gas heaters are the most common due to their being generally less expensive to run; electric water heaters shouldn’t be ignored and often have several benefits that might make sense for you.

As such, that’s what we’re here to discuss today. Here are some things for you to consider if you’re interested in purchasing an electric water heater. Let’s jump right in!

Cost

While natural gas heaters might give you a lower month to month cost, electrical water heaters are significantly less expensive to both purchase and install. Gas heaters are often complex installs that require gas line hookups and the like, which drives up the overall cost.

Energy Efficiency

Remember when we said gas heaters are generally less expensive than electric heaters? Well, there’s reason we used the term ‘generally’. Electric heaters take a little more attention to run cost-effectively but actually can be cheaper month to month than a gas version. You’ll have to pay attention to off-peak rates from utility companies and the like – as well as always making sure you’re Energy Star qualified; but both of these in combination can absolutely save you more money. In addition, electrical heaters are generally better for the environment as well. So in addition to saving some money, you’ll be doing a little good as well.

Life expectancy

Simply put, electrical heaters have fewer parts. When something has less parts, there’s less opportunity for something to go wrong. In addition, many of the components inside an electrical heater aren’t as exposed to the kind of direct heat that parts in a gas heater would be. That means significantly less wear and tear. And less wear and tear means a longer lasting water heater.

Safety

This should mostly be a no-brainer, but electrical water heaters are safer units than natural gas water heaters due to the obvious lack of risk associated with a gas explosion. Yes, electrical heaters can spark and electrocution and fires are a possibility you have to worry about, but simply put – those happen almost four times fewer times than gas explosion.

At the end of the day, you’ll have to make the best decision you can make for yourself. With a little extra time and care, electrical water heaters can save you money, help you do good by the environment and give you the peace of mind that you’ve got reliable tank that will last a long time that is safe to use. If you’re thinking of installing an electric water heater in your home, give us a call and we’ll be happy to provide you with a free consultation. Good luck!